Bulletin: Senators re-sign forward Jim O’Brien to a two-year contract

OTTAWA - The Ottawa Senators announced today that the club has re-signed forward Jim O’Brien to a two-year contact.

O’Brien, 23, split the 2011-12 season between Ottawa and the club’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Binghamton Senators. He began the season with the B-Sens, recording 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) while registering 10 penalty minutes in 27 games.

Recalled to Ottawa on Feb. 3, O’Brien remained with the parent Senators for the remainder of the season, contributing three goals and three assists while adding four penalty minutes over 28 games. He scored his first career National Hockey League goal in Ottawa’s 6-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Feb. 15 and also played in each of the team’s seven playoff games of its quarter-final series against the New York Rangers. His lone point was an assist on Kyle Turris’ game-winning goal in overtime of Game 4 on April 18.

Ottawa’s first-round pick (29th overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, O’Brien has recorded six points in 34 career NHL games. In 183 career AHL contests, he has registered 39 goals and 49 assists while accumulating 126 penalty minutes. He appeared in each of the B-Sens’ 23 post-season contests in helping the team win the 2011 Calder Cup.

A native of Maplewood, Minn., O’Brien has represented the United States internationally on three occasions, including the 2009 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Ottawa along with the 2006 and 2007 IIHF World Under-18 Championships.